1967 effective annex of East Jerusalem and part of the West Bank by Israel
Israel's occupation and effective annexation of East Jerusalem in 1967 remains one of the most contested territorial disputes in the modern Middle East.
Key Facts
- Year of occupation
- 1967, during the Six-Day War
- Previous controller
- Jordan (since 1950 annexation)
- Jerusalem Law passed
- July 1980 by the Knesset
- UN Security Council response
- Declared law null and void (Res. 478)
- Annual Israeli commemoration
- Jerusalem Day
By the Numbers
Location
Cause → Event → Consequence
Jerusalem was divided following the 1948 Arab-Israeli War and the 1949 Armistice Agreements, placing West Jerusalem under Israeli control and East Jerusalem, including the Old City, under Jordanian control. Jordan formally annexed East Jerusalem as part of its broader annexation of the West Bank in 1950, establishing the pre-1967 status quo.
During the Six-Day War of June 1967, Israeli forces seized East Jerusalem from Jordan, bringing the entire city under Israeli control. Israel subsequently extended its law, jurisdiction, and administration over East Jerusalem. In July 1980, the Knesset enacted the Jerusalem Law, declaring a unified Jerusalem the capital of Israel and formalizing the annexation.
The international community broadly rejected the annexation; the United Nations Security Council passed Resolution 478, declaring the 1980 Jerusalem Law null and void. The status of Jerusalem became a central and deeply contested issue in the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, with most countries declining to recognize Israeli sovereignty over East Jerusalem and maintaining their embassies elsewhere.